Cooperation with Bryn Mawr College

The Haverford economics department, like most departments at the College, cooperates extensively with the counterpart department at Bryn Mawr College. By coordinating curriculum and extra-curricular activities, the economics departments of the two colleges enhance each other's programs in important ways. Detailed information about the Bryn Mawr economics department can be found on their web site. This page explains the complementarities between the economics courses offered at Haverford and Bryn Mawr. These complementarities arise primarily with respect to electives offered at the 200- and 300-levels, and in the core courses in statistics, econometrics, and intermediate micro and macro theory. The main differences between the Haverford and Bryn Mawr economics curricula arise in the introductory courses and in the senior thesis.

One of the great benefits of cooperation between the two departments is that it greatly increases the range of economics electives available to students at the two colleges. With eleven faculty members between the two departments, the selection of topics courses we can offer is much wider than either department could provide alone. This is true of both 200-level electives (which generally require one or two introductory courses as prerequisites) and 300-level electives (which generally require one or two intermediate level theory courses as prerequisites). The economics electives offered at the two colleges in recent years include Advanced International Economic Policy, Advanced Seminar in Macroeconomics, Corporate Finance, The Demise of the Soviet System, Developing Economies, Economic Analysis of Contemporary Policy Issues, Economic Sociology, Economics of Local Government Programs, Environmental Economics, Financial Accounting, Global Economics: Theory and Policy, History of Economic Thought, Industrial Organization and Public Policy, International Economics, International Finance and Economic Policy, Law and Economics, Linear Optimization and Game Theory, Money and Banking, Open Economy Macroeconomics, Public Finance, Seminar on the Economics of Poverty and Discrimination, Taming the Modern Corporation, Theory of Noncooperative Games, Topics in Social Policy, U.S. Economic History, Urban Economics, and Women in the Labor Market. Courses currently being offered can be found on the on-line Tri-College Course Guide.

The courses in statistics (Econ 203), Econometrics (Econ 304), intermediate microeconomics (Econ 300), and intermediate macroeconomics (econ 302) that are required for the Haverford economics major are all offered both at Haverford and Bryn Mawr. The two departments coordinate scheduling of these courses so that in most cases each of these four courses is offered at at least one of the colleges every semester. Being able to take any of these core courses in any semester greatly enhances the flexibility students have in planning their programs of study.

The differences between the curricula of the two departments arise primarily in the introductory courses and in the senior thesis. The major and minor in economics at Haverford require introductory courses in both micro (Econ 101 or Econ 100) and macro (Econ 102); the Bryn Mawr major and minor require an introductory course (Econ 105) that presents principles of micro and macro in a single semester. When choosing courses, students should be aware that taking Econ 105 at Bryn Mawr does does not substitute for either of the introductory courses required for the Haverford major and minor in economics. Except in rare cases, students majoring in economics at Haverford write their senior theses under the supervision of a Haverford faculty member, while enrolled in Econ 396 at Haverford. Students majoring in economics at Bryn Mawr write their theses while enrolled in an appropriate 300-level course at Bryn Mawr.